I don’t know what inspired the baking of cinnamon rolls. Sometimes I just have to do the thing that pops into my head.

We are not sad to have them making warm delicious smells in the house while the snow is still on the ground.

Here’s what I did. In metric, not scalable, with some very brief directions.

Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients

For the Tangzhong

113g whole milk

24g high gluten flour

For theDough

151g whole milk

300g high gluten flour

1 teaspoon salt

25g granulated sugar

2 teaspoons instant yeast

57g unsalted butter, room temp

For the Filling

14g butter, melted

107g light brown sugar, packed

14g high gluten flour

4 teaspoons ceylon cinnamon, typical cinnamon

pinch of salt

For the Icing

50g butter, melted, for brushing on the rolls out of the oven, then use the remaining butter for the icing. 

60g cream cheese

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

pinch table salt

170g confectioners' sugar, sifted

1 tablespoons milk or buttermilk 

Make the tangzhong by combining the flour and milk in a small pot. Heat and stir until it thickens, scraping the sides and bottom of the pot. Set aside to cool. 

In a bowl of a stand mixer combine the ingredients for the dough. Add the tangzhong. Use the dough hook and mix for 5 minutes. 

Transfer to the table and knead a few minutes. 

Grease the bowl and allow the dough to rise in the bowl until double ish, about 90 minutes. 

While the dough is rising make the filling. Melt the butter in a small pot. Add the remaining filling ingredients and stir to combine. 

When the dough is doubled, roll out evenly into a rectangle. Sprinkle the dough with the filling then roll it into a log. Use dental floss to cut the roll into 8 pieces. 

Spray a 9 inch pan with cooking spray and set the rolls in the pan to rise. 

You can pause here for an overnight rise in the refrigerator, cover your rolls with film and let sit overnight. Or you can continue to let them rise on the counter. Once they are well proofed, very soft, preheat the oven to 375. If you do the overnight rise, in the morning proof your rolls, until the are soft, depending on the temperature this can be 60-120 minutes.

Bake 15 ish minutes until the center of the fattest one is 190 degrees. 

Melt your butter while the rolls bake. 

Brush the rolls with melted butter then proceed to make your frosting by adding the cream cheese to the remaining melted butter. Heat gently on the stove top until the cream cheese is melted. Add the remaining ingredients, all but the milk. It should be a smooth paste. Add just enough milk to get to a spreadable consistency. 

Spread onto your rolls and enjoy.